The milestone procedure was done Monday at Harborview Medical Center. The FDA only approved it for this part of the body three weeks ago, but doctors wasted no time putting it to good use.

Steven Lee, 45, is the victim of a hit and run accident.

Lee suffered serious head and spine injuries. "I had a lot of body work that needed to be done," he said of his injuries.

Doctors also say Lee needed something done to prevent swelling in the major artery of the chest, also known as a thoracic aortic aneurism.

"It's like having a weak spot on a tire, a blister on a tire and the blister's getting bigger and bigger and there's more and more pressure," explained Cardiothoracic Surgeon Dr. Riyad Karmy-Jones. "Eventually the tire pops and you have a flat tire."

Dr. Karmy-Jones is one of the men who performed the procedure on Lee. He says the problem is people can't afford this kind of flat tire because it probably wouldn't give you long to live.

To put it bluntly, "If the aneurism does burst, you'll die within seconds in most cases," he said. That's why the GORE TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis device is so significant.

In the past, a patient like Lee would have needed major surgery. Large incisions would be made in the chest -- and possibly the abdomen -- and there would have been risk of paralysis or even death in some cases.

But now, there's this small new device. It is inserted into the artery in a fairly routine, quick procedure. Then doctors pull the ripcord and the device expands and blood flow is strong again.

Doctors say it's basically an extended angioplasty.

"It's a graph that's covered. So the stents, the things that keep it open, are actually outside. When you release it, it opens up and actually plugs the hole on the inside of the artery," said Dr. Karmy-Jones.

For patients like Lee, that means reduced risk of having a chest aneurism and a quicker recovery time.

"I feel very proud," Lee said after the surgery, "and I have a lot of gratitude toward the people who worked on me."

Lee's experience will only help the 15,000 people each year diagnosed with this problem.

This same device has been used at the University of Washington for the past five years in procedures in the abdominal region. But now, with the recent okay from the FDA, doctors have the option available for the chest.